West Indies, Bangladesh Looking To Register Their Next Win To Keep Their Semi-Final Contention Strong

After losing successive matches, both West Indies and Bangladesh will aim to bring their campaign back on track with a win as they face each other in a crucial Group 1 Super 12 match of the ongoing Men's T20 World Cup at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, here on Friday.

Bangladesh, who lost to England and Sri Lanka in back-to-back matches are currently placed fifth while West Indies suffered defeat against England and South Africa are at the sixth spot in Group 1.

Both teams need to get over their losses quickly if they want to keep their semi-final hopes alive.

The West Indies desperately need to sort out their batting issues. In the match against England, they were bowled out for 55 after batters played some irresponsible shots rather than rotating the strike and building the innings.

In the second game, the two-time champions bettered their 55 by 88 runs against South Africa. However, that was also not enough to notch up a win. The batting line-up featuring the likes of Lendl Simmons, Evin Lewis, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, and Dwayne Bravo need to plan well and play as a unit and according to the situation.

The West Indian bowlers have also looked ordinary with not enough runs to defend. However, left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein has been impressive while Jason Holder was recently drafted in to replace the injured Obed McCoy and he can play in this important match.

On the other hand, Mahmudullah-led Bangladesh needs to fire in all departments. They are familiar with the sluggish sub-continent tracks of UAE and yet they have failed to exploit it.

Despite posting a competitive total of 171 for 4 against Sri Lanka, they lost the game due to sloppy fielding and poor bowling. In the second game, Bangladesh failed against England with both bat and ball as they lost the match by eight wickets after posting a below-par 124 for 9.

They will be hoping that the likes of Mohammad Naim, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, and Mushfiqur Rahim come good with the bat against the defending champions.

In bowling too, Bangladesh have lacked discipline and will have to put up a much-improved show, as West Indies, although struggling at the moment, have a batting line-up full of T20 stars.

Squads:

West Indies: Kieron Pollard (c), Nicholas Pooran, Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Roston Chase, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Jason Holder, Lendl Simmons, Ravi Rampaul, Andre Russell, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh Jr.

Bangladesh: Mahmudullah (capt), Liton Das, Mohammed Naim, Mahedi Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Nurul Hasan, Afif Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Shamim Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Mohammed Saifuddin and Shoriful Islam.